Golovkin Poised to Become Elected International Boxing Leader, Will Guide Sport Toward Olympic Games in LA 2028
Former world middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin will be chosen as the head of the global boxing federation and guide boxing as it heads toward the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
Golovkin, who won Olympic silver in Athens in 2004 and achieved the most world title defences in middleweight history, is the only presidential candidate approved by the sport’s independent vetting panel for the upcoming vote. As a result, he will assume leadership of the boxing governing body, which became the governing body for amateur Olympic boxing this year.
This position used to be held by the former international boxing body, but it was banished by the International Olympic Committee in the year 2023 following a series of judging, corruption and governance scandals.
In his manifesto, the boxing veteran, whose initial term runs until 2027, vowed to rebuild confidence in the sport and secure boxing’s long-term place in the Olympic programme, starting with the Los Angeles 2028.
“During my amateur career, I proudly won a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics, representing not only Kazakhstan but the principles of integrity and hard work that define Olympic boxing,” he wrote. “In my pro career, I won numerous world titles, recognized for my integrity, respect, and commitment to fair play.
“I am committed to improving oversight, guaranteeing open finances, advancing tech solutions to guarantee fair judging, and expanding opportunities for athletes of all genders in all corners of the globe.”
The International Olympic Committee organized the boxing tournaments itself at the 2021 Tokyo Games and the Paris 2024 Games. Nonetheless, after last year’s Olympics were marred by disputes about gender eligibility, it declared a need for a fresh collaborator in time for 2028.
In February, it granted recognition to the new boxing federation, which then ran the 2025 world championships in the city of Liverpool. For the championships, the organization introduced a mandatory sex screening test, to assess qualification of male and female athletes, a step which the IOC is also considering for LA 2028.
